County Government

Rappahannock County has the
traditional County Board of Supervisors form of
government. The County has five voting districts that are
decennially revised based upon population: Hampton,
Jackson, Piedmont, Stonewall-Hawthorne, and Wakefield.
One supervisor is elected from each district. The Board
of Supervisors is elected to serve four-year terms and is
basically responsible for the legislative,
administrative, and financial aspects of County
government. The Board holds regular meetings at 2:00 PM
for General Business and 7:00 PM for Public Hearings once
a month at the County Courthouse located in the Town of
Washington, and such other meetings as the pace of
business may dictate.

Rappahannock
County has a County Administrator, Garrey W. Curry, Jr.
The Rappahannock County Planning
Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals are administrative
agents for the County and the Circuit Court,
respectively. They direct the administration of the
Zoning, Subdivision and Erosion and Sediment Control
Ordinances. The County Planning Commission consists of
seven members, one of whom is a member of the Board of
Supervisors, another of whom is a representative of the
Board of Zoning Appeals and the remaining five who are
appointed to four-year terms of office by the Board of
Supervisors by voting district. The Board of Zoning
Appeals consists of five members all appointed at large
by the Circuit Court for five-year terms of office.

Some of the
local government organizations involved in local planning
efforts include the Rappahannock County School Board, the
Rappahannock County Water and Sewer Authority (RCWSA),
and the Rappahannock County Recreational Facilities
Authority (RCRFA). The Rappahannock County School Board,
composed of five elected members representing the five
magisterial districts of the County, are the stewards of
the County's public educational facilities. As such, they
administer programs that consume the majority of public
spending in the County in their mission to provide the
highest quality education available. The RCWSA was
established in April 1968 pursuant to the Code of
Virginia with the primary purpose of furnishing water and
sewer facilities or both to residents and businesses in
certain areas in Rappahannock County. It currently
manages facilities providing sewer service to the village
of Sperryville and to the County’s two public
schools, as well as water facilities in the Town of
Washington. On November 2, 1978, the RCRFA was created.
The establishment of this Authority enables the County to
raise and solicit funds from various local, state, and
federal agencies and to provide increased recreational
opportunities for the residents of Rappahannock County.
The RCRFA currently owns and operates the Rappahannock
County Park located near the Town of Washington on U.S.
Rt. 211, and sponsors the annual Fodderstack 10-K
Race.

Several
agencies of the Commonwealth of Virginia provide services
through local field offices, whose funding is provided,
in part, by direct local appropriation. The relationship
between these agencies, the Department of Health, the
Department of Social Services, the Sheriff's Office, the
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
(VPI&SU) Extension Office, and the local government
is one of partnership with the Board of Supervisors and
County staff providing funding and support,
respectively.